Samurai sword maniac jailed after terrifying street attack on hero who stepped in to save strangers

Published 21 October 2026, 17:12

• Aaron Messenbird, 32, raised the blade menacingly at a group near a van in Milton Keynes before pouncing.
• His brave challenger suffered rib injuries and a sliced hand tendon needing specialist treatment, said PC Jordan Buchanan-Kay.
• 'Violent and unprovoked,' the officer said, praising bystanders whose courage 'undoubtedly contributed to protecting others from harm'.
• Messenbird fled but was spotted still clutching the sword — he got 12 months at Aylesbury Crown Court.

A man who menaced a group of strangers with a samurai sword before attacking a bystander who stepped in to protect them has been jailed.

Aaron Messenbird, 32, of Wandsworth Place, Bradwell Common, Milton Keynes, was sentenced to 12 months' imprisonment at Aylesbury Crown Court on 14 October.

His guilty plea covered three charges: carrying a bladed article in a public place, using a bladed article to threaten another person, and assault occasioning actual bodily harm — an assault that causes physical injury to the victim.

The attack unfolded at around 9.05pm on 30 July, when Messenbird, carrying the sword, approached a small group of people in and around a van.

He made threats towards the group and lifted the weapon menacingly.

A bystander stepped in to shield the others from harm, and Messenbird turned on him, advancing with the blade held in the air.

During the struggle that followed, the victim suffered injuries to his ribs and wounds to his hands, including a damaged tendon that required specialist treatment.

A second member of the public then stepped in, causing Messenbird to flee the scene.

A short time later, he was spotted walking along Silbury Boulevard still carrying the sword.

Messenbird was arrested on 5 August and charged the following day.

PC Jordan Buchanan-Kay, of the Central Milton Keynes Neighbourhood Policing Team, said: "This was a violent and unprovoked incident in which Messenbird threatened members of the public with a potentially lethal weapon before assaulting a man who had stepped in to protect others."

"The victim suffered painful injuries, including damage to a tendon in his hand, as a result of Messenbird's actions," he added.

PC Buchanan-Kay praised "the bravery of the members of the public who intervened and helped prevent this incident from becoming far more serious," saying "their actions undoubtedly contributed to protecting others from harm."

But he urged "people not to put themselves in danger when confronted with somebody carrying a weapon," explaining that "the safest course of action is to move to a place of safety and call 999 immediately, providing as much information as possible to help officers respond quickly."

PC Buchanan-Kay said he is "pleased that Messenbird has been given a custodial sentence" and hopes the outcome "provides reassurance to the victims and the wider community that violent offending involving weapons will not be tolerated."

Anyone with information about knife crime can contact Thames Valley Police by calling 101 or reporting online, and should always dial 999 in an emergency.